Improvement in treadles for sewing-machines



l uit ZSheets--Sh-eetZ. w. H. STEWART.

Y Treadles for Sewing-Machines. N0. 144,366. Patented Nov .4,1873.v

UNITED S'rn'rns ATENTQFIIQII.

WILLIAM H. STEWART, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF ANDALFRED ROBINSON, OF MORRISTOWN, NEW JERSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN TREADLES FOR SEWING-MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. lll/1,366, datedNovember 4, 1873; application filed April 28, 1873.

To all whom it may concern Beit known that I, WILLIAM H. STEWART, ofBrooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented anImprovement in Treadles for Sewing-Machines, of which the following is aspecification:

In the treadles of sewing-machines it is usual to place the fulcrum oraxis of motion below the foot-plate; hence7 as the treadle oscillatesupon this point the ankle-joints of the-operator swing in an arc of acircle and communicate to the lower joints of the legs a pendulousmotion, and to the thighs and hip joints a tremulous and jerking'tmovement that is geuerally considered detrimental to health, especiallywith females.

My invention is made for preventing motion at either the knee orhip-joints in running the sewing-machine, and this is accomplished byswinging the treadle upon centers that are in line with theankle-joints, so that the foot will move upon the ankle-joints by theaction of the muscles of the legs without any vibratory or jarringmotion at the hip-joints, pelvis, or base of the vertebrae.

In the drawing, Figure l is a plan of said treadle. Fig. 2 is a frontview of the same. Fig. 3 is a side view, partially in section; and Fig.4. is an elevation of the link and a portion of the treadle-yoke,detached.

The frames a of the sewing-machine are of the usual character, exceptthat they are provided with the slots b and pivots c; or, if desired,the frames a may be separate from the ordinary sewing-machine frame orset within the wooden cabinet-case or otherwise retained in place. Thelinks d hang from the pivots c, and suspend the treadleyokef by thehooks e or joint connections. Upon the treadle-yoke f are the foot pieceor pieces g. These should be provided with a rib or ledge, 3, againstwhich the boot or shoe heel rests, and by the clamping-screw h and slotin the foot-piece g,

`such foot-piece can he adj usted transversely of the yoke f, in orderto accommodate the shape of shoe and heel to bring the center of theankle-joint of the operator in a vertical plane.

passing longitudinallyr through the treadleyoke. At the ends of thetreadle-yoke there are vertical slot-s or openings corresponding to theslots b, and in such slotsb there are the justin g the connectionbetween the arm m that extends from the treadle-yoke and the pitman tothe sewing-machine crank, by,placing the joint-pin o for such pitman ina slot at the end of the arm m, and clamping the same by a nut; therebythe general position of the foot-pieces g can be tipped either one wayor the other, according to the lengthening or shortening the distancebetween the treadle and the crank of the sewing-machine. j

It will be apparent that the treadle-yoke and its parts hang from thelinks d, and that such links swing more or less as the treadle is moved,according to the position of the pivotpins i, and, if desired, there maybe division marks and numbers upon the surfaces of the frames a., nearthe slots b, to aid in adjusting the pivot-pins t'.

I claim as my invention- 1. The treadle-yoke f, suspended by the links dand swinging upon the pivot-pins i that are adjustable vertically in theslots of the yoke and frame a, substantially as and for the purposes setforth.

2. The foot-pieces g, adjustable horizontally upon the treadle-yokef, incombination with the adjustable pivots and treadle, substantially as andfor the purposes set forth.

3. The arm mand adjustable connection for the pitman to thesewing-machine crank, in combination with the swinging sewing-machinetreadle-yoke and the foot-piece, substantially as set forth.

Signed by me this l21st day of April, 1873.

Witnesses: W. H. STEWART.

GEO. T. PINCKNEY, CHAs. H. SMITH.

